I'd say it is up to the seller. If they want to monitor BPL to see what is going on, then they can state, as others have, that the first post on BPL determines the buyer. When there is a little negotiation or clarification of shipping, etc, that is pretty hard to carry out on the forum.

I think "PM sent", and if that deal goes through, "payment sent" are sufficient. This puts the responsibility on the potential buyer and not the seller, who may or may not be responding as quickly as some buyers would like. "PM sent" and "payment sent" are status updates for all potential buyers. If you have "PM sent" down first then you are first in line, but not necessarily guaranteed the sale (until you actually pay). If the owner doesn't want to honor first come first serve then that is their call, though I would think most people expect and do honor that unwritten rule. I would hope so at least. Sometimes people make honest mistakes, particularly on an item that is highly coveted and may be a matter of minutes difference. This is just my opinion, does anyone else agree? Or have a better suggestion?

I am more concerned with the timeline, if I tell somone Iwant to buy an item I pay within a few minutes or tellthem I will pay in X amount of time. Often folks say they willtake something and not reply back for hours and others are queing up.

I got a PM the other night and had no way to respond as they did not have a PM set up nor had any posts to figure out who they were nor did they supply an email addy. I had a few stoves for sale earlier in the winter they were asking about.Duane

Not necessarily true. Some folks just send a PM to the seller without posting that in the forums, which might be one of the things Steven is getting to in his initial post. I've done it myself. I don't see an issue with it. I guess I figure it's up to the seller to keep everyone informed in his/her FS thread, and I think most sellers sell to whoever contacts them with the first "I'll take it, what's your paypal addy," whether that's by PM or thread posting.

Yea, to max's point, certainly seems to me that any "rules" would be pretty useless, generally ignored and impossible to police. Its a bit of a crap shoot as a buyer, especially if trying to buy a really popular item. But it is the seller's responsibility to state their personal selling rules up front and to be fair, though there isn't anyway to know if they are. Just gotta understand that going in...

My take: Keep it simple, no rules. Seller dictates whether PM, email or thread response .... If someone doesn't have PM's turned on or whatever .... that's their bad. Just be clear on how you expect a response and if someone doesn't follow your instructions, too bad ... there may be gnashing of teeth and tears flowing, if they don't get item, but that's on them.

It seems simple to me: Everyone who can read the ad also has the ability to respond to the ad in the thread. If the seller has posted his terms clearly, and a buyer declares "I'll take it!", then to me that sounds like a done deal. PMs can also be sent to alert the seller that he has a buyer, in case he's not monitoring the thread. General questions should be asked in the thread because someone else might have the same question. There might be some confusion if a seller is listing multiple items. In such cases, the seller should spell out whether or not he will break up the set. Shipping terms should also be spelled out. If a potential buyer still has questions, he should try to get an answer either in the thread or via PM before announcing "I'll take it" in the thread. "PM sent" in the thread is too vague.

Edit: Did not realize that non-members could read gear swap threads. I never experienced BPL as a non-member.

"I'll take it" is pretty clear. "PM sent" just means a message has been sent, further complicated by sellers using email accounts they don't monitor directly. A simple solution would be for the prospective buyer to be more succinct: "PM sent with questions" or "PM sent with offer" to which the seller might respond with "still available" if the offer was not accepted. Just good clear basic communication.

BTW, "I'm interested" means nothing and is really weak. If you want the thing, say so. If you have a question, ask!

+1 on posting size, gender, etc in the title. Giving basic measurements for clothing helps too: across the armpits, back length, center of collar to cuff for tops and across the waist and inseam for bottoms. Weights of course. Photos, definitely yes.

As to leaving the prices up, the sales are ultimately private transactions. If the seller wants to leave it, fine; if not, it really is no one else's business. There are so many variables that it is pretty much useless anyway.

Honesty, courtesy, and personal integrity are the keys.

The forum format is not a perfect world and the sales should be kept in perspective: this is small stuff. Breathe.

I would like to add something on Pay if Forward offers: if you accept a PIF item, follow through with a reciprocal PIF and keep the spirit of the thing going.

I also think it's the sellers option to sell to whoever he/she pleases even if for hard-to-understand reasons. Buying and selling is a fluid affair that has elements of timing (whether seller or buyer checks computer often etc...), indecision (buyers and sellers both back out for a myriad of reasons) and personal preferences. I'm just saying that attempts to regulate how we buy and sell (short of dishonesty and misrepresentation) does not seem appropriate, tenable or needed. Again, my humble opinion.